How much is overtraining?

[Spartacus Maximus]

There are more than a few opinions on how much training is over training. Constantly aiming for improvement by doing just a little more for a little longer is good, but what exactly is too much? What is your defenition?

[JR 137]

Everyone's overtraining point is different. Seeing a plateau is a sign; not being able to get stronger/better no matter how hard you push. Yes, everyone has limits, but plateauing before those limits are reached are a warning sign.

Constant fatigue is another sign. Exercise should make you feel more energetic and physically better overall. That doesn't mean that if you're tired for a day or two here and there you're overdoing it; but if you generally feel worse off because of training, then you're overtraining.

Insomnia is another sign. Just like being overtired leads to worse sleep, overtraining does the same.

Constant setbacks due to injury. Constant muscle pulls, sprains, etc. tell you you need to slow down.

When people go too far, they actually decrease in performance. People get weaker and slower.

As important as training is, proper rest and nutrition are equally important. Improper rest leads to more injuries, and improper nutrition leads to greater recovery time and decreases in performance.

I was an athletic trainer (sports med, not personal trainer) for 15 years. Most of that time was spent with NCAA Div I men's basketball and men's soccer. Basketball is notorious for overtraining, and the season is very long.

[DWx]

Everyone's overtraining point is different. Seeing a plateau is a sign; not being able to get stronger/better no matter how hard you push. Yes, everyone has limits, but plateauing before those limits are reached are a warning sign.

Constant fatigue is another sign. Exercise should make you feel more energetic and physically better overall. That doesn't mean that if you're tired for a day or two here and there you're overdoing it; but if you generally feel worse off because of training, then you're overtraining.

Insomnia is another sign. Just like being overtired leads to worse sleep, overtraining does the same.

Constant setbacks due to injury. Constant muscle pulls, sprains, etc. tell you you need to slow down.

When people go too far, they actually decrease in performance. People get weaker and slower.

As important as training is, proper rest and nutrition are equally important. Improper rest leads to more injuries, and improper nutrition leads to greater recovery time and decreases in performance.

I was an athletic trainer (sports med, not personal trainer) for 15 years. Most of that time was spent with NCAA Div I men's basketball and men's soccer. Basketball is notorious for overtraining, and the season is very long.

This is exactly it. Usually your body tells you in some way or another that you should back off and let it rest for a while.

I know not exactly the answer you were getting at, but for me, overtraining is just as much an issue when training starts to effect you emotionally and eat into your normal life. What I mean by that is if you are fed up of training or it's causing stress, it's OK to back off for a while. Likewise if it is getting in the way of family life and work.

[sensei8]

Overtraining!?! That's a pretty big word, and not just in the MA. Is that determined by...whom? Self? Spouse? Doctor? Instructor? Just whom? What are the parameters to overtraining, and do these parameters change, and what's behind those changes??

Your body will send you signals subtly or immediately that you are or that you might be overtraining. Pay close attention to those signals, and seek out a doctor for advice/treatment. Ignoring signals will just introduce a possible long term sufferings, and chronic.

You can be the best judge if you're overtraining! But often times, one will ignore what the bodies trying to tell you for whatever the reason(s) are or aren't. Pushing oneself is important, but that too, must be toned.

Your spouse will send signals, both directly or indirectly to you. Both for sane reasons, as well as insanely jealous reasons. Spouse's want to spend more time with you, no matter what you're involved in. Their support can be interpreted incorrectly; a thin lined balance act, if there ever was! Either you train, or your spouse dictates the training. I've told my wife that while I love her more than words could ever express, MA is my first, and last love before and after her! Spouses come and go; that's the fact, but the MA is here 24/7/365/4 Life. My wife's a strong women and she'd never get between my MA training, unless she felt that my life was in jeopardy.

I believe that an instructor wouldn't ever minimize training intentionally because qualified instructors know that one must, from time to time, over train. If there's a such thing as "over training", and most instructors don't have those words in their vocabulary, but the opposite instead. However, qualified instructors will intervene only if they saw signals that their student was over training.

Doctors could care less about the MA journey. Their concern is their patients well being. Not the next testing cycle, not the next tournament, not the next class!! NOTHING but the patients well being, and if they see the tale tell signals that their patient is suffering from their over training, they'll strongly suggest that the patient ease from training or stop all together, if just for a short time or long term.

I love the MA, and as hard as it would be for me to stop for any duration, I'd trade the MA in for a long healthy life!

Still, the final decision is that of the practitioner, and no one else!

[Nidan Melbourne]

Overtraining occurs at different points in time for everyone. It is when people start getting injuries and highly prone to fatigue. Even for 'healthy' people it means you are physically active most days with 2 days rest, even overweight/obese people require rest days to help recover and prevent injuries. But this comes off from Moderate to intense exercise, with normal walking being at a Low intensity.

Training and hitting a plateau is a good thing, but to improve you need to increase by 10% at a time. Often people will do more than that is safe, which can include training more days than they should. In the sports world overtraining is very common, irregardless of sport (Martial Artists are not exempt from this) as they push their bodies hard nearly every single day and the trainers often don't take into account every player as an individual (Sorry JR 137!!) whilst others do take it into account during training sessions.

Currently I am training 20 athletes from Basketball, Rugby Union + League, Netball and Karate. Out of them all the Rugby Union and Karate players/practitioners were the most reasonable and looked heavily after their own health to prevent overtraining and injuries. These clients vary from the age of 12 to 52, and some of the young ones are going overboard by the time that I took them on as clients.

When I am working with clients that aren't into exercise or anything like that, I incorporate Karate as a way of helping them along and making it fun and get them to focus on learning something through movement. But it teaches them more than just how to kick and punch, but how to look after themselves and that exercise can be fun and enjoyable.

For instance I ignored the signs of overtraining where i hurt my knee (Have zero mensicus in my left knee due to surgery) and what I can tell a stress fracture in my right foot. Which sucks because I am due for my grading in 5 weeks time, which now means I am likely to have to miss that grading. Which is why i was working so hard to get ready for! but alas my knee and foot gave out to it. Now i get the chance to rest my joints and heal before grading.

As much as the final decision is the individual in relation to their own health, often they need that reminder that they are not indestructable and need to adjust their training to prevent injury. This is where their trainers, teachers etc need to have awareness of overtraining AND overreaching (Going too far in upgrading their training) and what consequences occur as such.

[IcemanSK]

Everyone's overtraining point is different. Seeing a plateau is a sign; not being able to get stronger/better no matter how hard you push. Yes, everyone has limits, but plateauing before those limits are reached are a warning sign.

Constant fatigue is another sign. Exercise should make you feel more energetic and physically better overall. That doesn't mean that if you're tired for a day or two here and there you're overdoing it; but if you generally feel worse off because of training, then you're overtraining.

Insomnia is another sign. Just like being overtired leads to worse sleep, overtraining does the same.

Constant setbacks due to injury. Constant muscle pulls, sprains, etc. tell you you need to slow down.

When people go too far, they actually decrease in performance. People get weaker and slower.

As important as training is, proper rest and nutrition are equally important. Improper rest leads to more injuries, and improper nutrition leads to greater recovery time and decreases in performance.

I was an athletic trainer (sports med, not personal trainer) for 15 years. Most of that time was spent with NCAA Div I men's basketball and men's soccer. Basketball is notorious for overtraining, and the season is very long.

I agree completely with this & add the mental/emotional component to the above. If training (or the idea of it) seems like drudgery (you receive significantly less happiness from training), if training gets in the way of having normal relationships (because you train too much), or if you think about training all the time when you're not training (to the point that it gets in the way of your job or relationships), you might be overtraining.

Training, even hard training, should bring be a positive experience & should enhance our lives, not make them more difficult.

[Alan Armstrong]

When over training is not efficient; then it is too much. Most of us are guilty of it. This is why we have DOMS. Delayed-Onset-Muscle-Soreness. Under training can also be an issue. Training incorrectly another issue. To be happy when training is what keeps me coming back for more. To be goal oriented: bigger, stronger, faster, is a young person's game. Maintaining and promoting good health is efficient training.